No Regrets (A Stepbrother New Adult Novella)(7)

She leaned her head back and closed her eyes for a moment, but even without seeing him, she knew Parker was there the moment he came into the room.





Chapter Six





Parker





He felt something deep down inside as he watched her. She was nothing like the women he was usually attracted to, but the attraction was there, there was no question about it. She was petite and curvy in all the right places, and yet he had no doubt that she could defend herself when necessary. He followed the arch of her neck with his eyes, lower and lower, until they roamed over her entire body. The noticeable tension in the air indicated that she knew he was there. He took a sip of his drink and settled across from her.

“It appears that you and I will be spending a lot of time together in the near future.” He watched her eyes flutter open, her inky lashes long on her pale cheeks. He also saw the slight frown cross her face before she responded.

“It seems that way, yes. They’re so happy.” She pulled her hair around to one side of her graceful neck and leaned on her hand.

“Yes, they are, indeed.” He looked away from Liv. “I hope he knows what he’s doing.” He muttered it to himself, but he saw the heat begin to rise in her eyes.


“Just what is that supposed to mean, Parker? Is that some dig at my mother?” She stood up then, and he watched her. She put her hands on both hips. “I’ll have you know, my mother is a good woman. A damn good one, to tell the truth.”

He let her stand there as he waited for the fireworks to die down, watching her seethe.

“No Liv, that’s not what I meant at all. I’m a pretty good judge of character. I know she’s a good woman. That doesn’t make me any less concerned about what they’re doing.” He smiled at her as she fumed. “Are you always like this?”

She relaxed some and crossed her arms in front of her. “Like what, exactly?”

“Angry.”

“I’m not always angry, I simply react when people make me angry.” She calmed down some more and took a deep breath. “Maybe you're right, maybe I am angry. This is just something big, and on top of exams and, well, everything.” She bit her lip and looked somewhat gloomy, and he wanted to pull her close.

He frowned at this thought. What was wrong with him? He felt this compelling need to help her somehow, and that was entirely new to him. She just looked so…vulnerable. She had mentioned exams.

“What school do you go to? I go to St. John’s.”

She regained some composure. “I go to State U. How funny, we’re only an hour apart. Both schools are only an hour or two from here, so, I guess that’s good—you know, for this wedding planning.” She smiled slightly at him, and he couldn’t help but smile back. They were certainly in a situation. She picked up her sweater from the chair and walked toward the deck. “I’m going outside for a bit.”

He watched her go and waited before he did anything stupid. He wanted to follow her outside and ask her why she was so sad, and yet so angry. For whatever reason, he wanted to get to know her. He knew better than to push his luck though; her wrath was more than he wanted to deal with.

It had to be the chase. He rarely had a woman turn him down, and now, this one wasn’t interested in him in the slightest. It didn’t help matters that they would be related soon.

Parker frowned; she would be his step sister. It was almost too much to think about.

He stood, walked outside, and joined her on the deck, despite his better judgment. Her head was tilted back, and the moonlight lit up her black hair in its ponytail, giving it a glowing shine. She was lost in the moment, so much so that he almost felt as though he had intruded.

“I’m scared for her, I think,” she said, without looking at him. “Scared she’ll get hurt. I’m not saying anything about your father, I’m just worried for her.”

“He won’t hurt her, Liv. He’s a good man.” He moved closer to her. The heat between them was almost palpable, and he wondered if she felt it, too.

“But, how can you be sure of it? I don’t know if she can handle a disappointment like that. It’s awful, and it changes you.”

By the way she said it, he knew she didn’t speak from an outsider’s point of view. She spoke from experience. I wonder who hurt her. He watched her bite her lip, lost in thought, and he felt something stir inside. Suddenly, his pants were too tight. Damn it, this was completely inappropriate—such awful timing. He was losing his mind. He couldn’t possibly be attracted to this woman that was about to become his step sister.

“She’s a grown woman, Liv. You just have to trust her to know what she wants, and you can’t control what she does.” He tried to sound nonchalant about it.

“I’m not trying to control anything! I’m just worried.” She was angry again, and her eyes glistened as she spun around to face him.

“I’m worried, too. You know, Olivia, this isn’t just about your Mom. My father never acted like this before, either. He’s been all business, and now he’s wearing an apron, and baking pie in the suburbs.” He hadn’t meant that the way it sounded, but he knew the moment the words left his mouth that he had said the wrong thing.

She barely clipped out the words, “I see. You know, suburbs do not necessarily mean lower class than whatever posh neighborhood you grew up in, if that’s what you’re concerned about.” She quickly spun around to go, but he grabbed her arm before she could leave the deck.